That seems to work, but that is really a good rule for someone with a full time job who wants to pick up a rental or two on the side and fart around on the weekends doing the maintenance themselves.

I would like to treat a seasoned investor to lunch and pick there brain a little.

I would like to know more, or determine if its all hype?

Say in the other state that my other house is located, I could pick something up with an after repair value of around $40-45K that would rent for $850 a month.

Your partner deferring payment until the prop sells is perfectly fine and makes sense to mitigate the risk of running out of money (which would necessitate borrowing from a party that is not disqualified, or selling project "as is", likely at a loss).If you had personal cash, you could also partner with your IRA on the front end of the deal (take title in both names), at a predefined % split.Be aware that flipping profits in IRA accounts are potentially subject to the stiff UBIT tax, based on "intent" to flip, which would be determined by the facts of a given case, as well as pattern of activity.

Hello everyone,I was wondering what most of you real estate investors would consider the "ideal" number of properties to be able to quit your job and live comfortably without having the NEED to pick up another property.

I debated between starting a business and real estate, as a way to financial freedom, and I picked business.

Pick the side of the fence you want to be on. :)

You alone must determine the paths and rewards you desire.Early in both of my mentor’s real estate careers, they chose to invest in residential rental properties.They expressed to major pitfalls; 1) too much reliance on a single target market, and 2) not fully considering all the associated costs prior to making an offer and ownership.Example of a single market; dependency on military tenants/buyers.

With legal advice from an attorney, and not from a real estate agent, you may determine what works best for you within the laws of your state and the U.S. laws.